NGC-certified McCloskey Collection Featured in Heritage Auctions’ FUN Show Sale

Numismatic Guaranty Company™ (NGC®) is proud to have certified more than 1,000 coins from the prestigious collection of John W. McCloskey, a renowned numismatic researcher. Heritage Auctions is offering these coins in two sales in early 2022, including the FUN US Coins Signature Auction, where 136 NGC-certified highlights of the collection will be offered on January 14.

The centerpiece of the collection is an 1870-CC Eagle graded NGC VF 25 (lot 4438). Struck in the inaugural year of the Carson City Mint, this issue is one of the rarest of all gold issues from that Nevada facility, which stopped issuing coins in 1893.

1870-CC $10 graded NGC VF 25 and pedigreed to the John McCloskey Collection Click images to enlarge.

In addition to Carson City, the sale features coins from five other US Mint facilities, including Philadelphia; New Orleans; Charlotte, North Carolina; San Francisco; and Dahlonega, Georgia. An 1856-D Quarter Eagle graded NGC XF 45 (lot 4417) is another highlight of the sale. Only a few dozen examples are believed to survive of this key date in the Liberty Head series.

1856-D $2.50 graded NGC XF 45 and pedigreed to the John McCloskey Collection Click images to enlarge.

The top silver coin in the sale is an 1842-O Small Date Quarter graded NGC AU 58 (lot 4326). This is a major variety in the series; only 24 examples are listed in the NGC Census, and this particular coin is the second-finest. The NGC Price Guide suggests this coin should easily realize five figures.

1842-O Small Date Quarter graded NGC AU 58 and pedigreed to the John McCloskey Collection Click images to enlarge.

NGC is showcasing these and other McCloskey Collection coins in an image gallery on its website. To explore the gallery, go to NGCcoin.com/McCloskey.

Nearly 900 more NGC-certified coins from the McCloskey Collection will be offered in a sale on February 6. All of these coins have been encapsulated with a special McCloskey Collection label that spotlights their important pedigree.

About John McCloskey

McCloskey’s passion for seated coinage reportedly began in the 1950s when he began collecting and studying Liberty Seated Dimes while still a teenager in high school. In 1973, he founded the Liberty Seated Collectors Club, which celebrates the rich heritage of American silver Liberty Seated coinage. McCloskey served as the president of the club as well as the volunteer editor of The Gobrecht Journal, which was the club’s periodical, for nearly four decades.

McCloskey co-authored definitive references on early US half dimes and dimes, including "Federal Half Dimes 1792-1837," which was published in 1998, and "Early United States Dimes 1796-1837: A Reference Book of Their Types, Varieties and Rarity," which was published in 1984. He also penned more than 200 articles for The Gobrecht Journal.

He passed away in 2018 at the age of 80.

"John McCloskey generously shared his insight with the numismatic community," said Mark Salzberg, NGC Chairman. "It was an honor for NGC to certify the coins from the McCloskey Collection, which he painstakingly assembled by leveraging his numismatic expertise."

Other NGC-certified highlights in the January sale include:

• a 1797 13 Stars Dime graded NGC VF 25 (lot 4310)
• an 1800 Dime graded NGC VF 30 (lot 4311)
• an 1803 Dime graded NGC VF 30 (lot 4313)
• an 1874-CC Arrows Dime graded NGC F 12 (lot 4321)
• an 1873-CC Arrows Quarter graded NGC F 12 (lot 4335)
• an 1873-CC Seated Liberty Dollar graded NGC VG Details (lot 4338)
• an 1834 Classic $5 Script 8, Crosslet 4 graded NGC AU 53 (lot 4374)
• an 1838-C $5 graded NGC VF 30 (lot 4400)
• an 1838-C $5 graded NGC VF 25(lot 4401)
• an 1838-D $5 graded NGC AU 50 (lot 4402)
• an 1870-CC $5 graded NGC VF 25 (lot 4424)
• an 1872-CC $10 graded NGC VF 20 (lot 4439)